About Us

The Open Road Project exists to spread kindness and meet the needs of strangers. We travel in a 1979 GMC Vanguard named Lily. These are our stories.

Friday, August 26, 2011

Chicago To Home.

After Iowa we encountered a strech of driving that was quite possibly the best of the whole trip. With the engine and brakes now working like it was 1979 and only 20 measly hours until home, we were loving Lily. Chicago traffic was embraced by blowing bubbles out the side window and loud music. With fresh tattoos, 5 happy campers inside, and bubbles flying out the window, Lily was a hilarious spectacle for onlookers. Eventually we made it to Jeremy's Aunt Linda north of Chicago and got to stay with her for the night. She prepared us a delicious meal and gave us a small work project in the community garden and after only 24 hours we were on our way. We were extremely thankful for real food, showers and real beds. We had one more stop in Chicago before we could set our sights on home. Our friend Anna Moriarty is in school at Judson University so we set up a meeting. The campus seemed like a good enough place... except the second we rolled onto the property we had campus security on our tail under concerns of a "suspicious vehicle." Eventually we straighten it all out, found our dear Anna and had some lunch together (in 2006, an RV run on barrels of vegetable oil spawned a terrorist alert on the campus, so security was on us instantly). The visit was brief, but great none the less. Now finally our next destination was not a Walmart lot, a distant relatives house, a long lost friends crib or the side of a mountain highway. Finally our destination was home. We got Lil ready for the last thousand kilometers and headed for the border. We made it to Sarnia at about 2 am, and made it home around noon the following day. Before the trip could be officially concluded we had one final order of business. We started our trip at Butterballs Diner in Jordan 5 weeks ago, so it was only fitting to end our trip here. We ate a delicious breakfast and with money still left in the blessing pot we thought what the heck, lets cover everyone's meal in the dining room. The waitress was more than helpful in this endeavor and we thought it fitting that our last deed (at least in terms of the trip) was at home. It was also nice because we received a great response and had a short but great conversation from each of the tables that were added to our tab. It was a quiet, yet perfect way to end the trip.

S0 that's about that! We made it home with everything intact, which is a miracle in and of itself. People would have lost money on the bet that our RV truly would make it home. We did.

Thank you so much for following the Open Road Project. We are so thankful that we are back home safe and sound. We couldn't have done this trip without the generous support of many of you and we want to thank you for that as well.

Please continue to follow this blog, as we have several more posts to come. Lists and reflections as well as some more video footage.
You guys are the best,The Boys

2 comments:

Happy you guys made it home safely, but sad to see that my morning reading habits must now change! Your last major stop on the road works as a nice summation of what you have experienced, and what lies ahead, CHICAGO, Change How I Consciously Act, Generosity Omnipresent.I would love to meet all 5 of you some day and shake your hands, the love, generous spirit and optimism that Canadians are fond of remembering in Jack Layton is much alive in you young men, same time next year?? John Maguire